Civil unrest and military exercises pose heightened risk to more than 200 threatened species, including elephant populations and the critically-endangered Eastern gorilla, conservationists warned yesterday. A report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature examined the close interplay between the environment and armed conflict, warning that human violence and unrest were taking a devastating toll on nature. The report also stressed that the sustainable management of natural resources should be seen as a tool to help preserve peace. Looking at more than 85,000 armed conflict events over the past 30 years, which have been responsible for the deaths of more than two million people, the report determined they more likely to erupt where there is less productive agricultural land available and when droughts are frequent. "These findings suggest that conservation, restoration and sustainable management of natural resources can help reduce the pressures that drive conflict by improving the condition and productivity of the landscape," IUCN chief economist Juha Siikamaki said in the statement.